In Costa Rica the Auto Mercado supermarket chain has announced the opening of 18 "Vindi" convenience stores before the end of 2013. The company opened its first store in San Joaquin de Flores, Heredia and the second opening is scheduled for next week in Santa Anta, Lindora. "Guillermo Alonso, project manager of the company, told ElFinancierocr.com that at the end the year there will be...

Costa Rican exports of scrap iron and steel grew by 40% between 2010 and 2011. In the past five years the number of exporters of scrap iron and steel has nearly doubled going from 34 to a total of 58 according to the Foreign Trade Promotion Office, Procomer. Taiwan with 42% and South Korea with 17% are the main destinations for Costa Rican exports of scrap metal. "They are followed ...

Panama has proclaimed itself the No. 1 logistical hub in America, but there are still some weak links in the chain. According to businessmen interviewed by Melissa Novoa and Oscar Brown for an analysis in Martesfinanciero.com, one of the weak links in Panama’s logistics chain is that "logistics are still not moving towards comprehensive e-commerce." Carlos Urriola, executive vice preside...

Fitch Ratings affirms its ratings for El Salvador as follows: - Long-Term Ratings (IDR) in foreign currency and local currency 'BB'; - Short-term rating 'B'; - Country Ceiling: 'BBB-'. The Rating Outlook has been revised to Negative from Stable. The revision of the outlook reflects the continued low economic growth performance of El Salvador in relation to its peers, which is expect...

The Trade Promotion Agreement signed between the U.S. and Panama provides that "any retail business may participate in the local market." An article in Laestrella.com.pa reports that the Deputy Minister of International Trade Negotiations, Diana Salazar, said: "There is a letter attached to the Trade Promotion Agreement (TPA) that discusses retail trade, where companies complying with the r...

BioMar and Grupo ACI -- whose main shareholder is Empresas AquaChile -- opened a cutting-edge feed plant for Tilapia. This first plant of Aquaculture Concentrate in Costa Rica is focused on tropical and subtropical species, both of freshwater and marine specimens. It is expected that this facility, considered as the most modern in Central America, reactivates employment in the area and c...

The expansion of the Panama Canal, involving the work of the Spanish company Sacyr Valle Hermoso and Panama’s Constructora Urbana, will allow the transit of vessels with three times the amount of cargo currently using the canal when expansion is completed in October 2014. The enlarged canal will allow transit of vessels with triple the present volume of cargo. “I think it will be one of ...

Central American and Caribbean countries can reduce their oil dependency and shield themselves from high oil prices through a combination of renewable energy, energy efficiency programs and regional energy integration, says a new World Bank report. According to “Mitigating Vulnerability to High and Volatile Oil Prices: Power Sector Experience in Latin America and the Caribbean,” launched t...

Fitch Ratings has affirmed Banco de Costa Rica's (BCR) Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs) at 'BB+' and Viability Rating (VR) at 'bb+'. A complete list of the rating actions is provided at the end of this press release. BCR's IDRs are driven by the explicit sovereign guarantees for all its liabilities. As stated in the Banking Law (Ley Organica del Sistema Bancario Nacional), all public banks hav...

In 2007, Warren Bennet believed he found paradise. Located along Costa Rica’s Pacific coast, the 665 acre property is complete with waterfalls, lakes and natural streams, as well as birds and butterflies in every color imaginable. “Anybody that wouldn’t love that place has got to be crazy,” said Bennet, who first visited the development in 2007. “After I went and viewed the property, I want...

Getting cash by discounting accounts receivable is a form of credit which has increased by 160% in the past two years. In April 2011 the 18 companies grouped under the Costa Rican Chamber of Factoring Companies managed a portfolio of $177 million, which is double the amount recorded in 2009. In June 2012, the business of factoring in Costa Rica amounted to about $220 million. In an art...

Costa Rica cable operator Amnet has officially rebranded as Tigo. Amnet was acquired by Millicom International Cellular, who operates under the Tigo brand name, in 2008. Tigo's Costa Rican operations will include 500 employees and 23 offices across the country. Tigo Costa Rica will continue offering cable TV, internet and fixed telephony services. Tigo does not plan to launch mobile services i...

WestJet announced today it will add four new sun destinations and extend two more from seasonal to year-round as part of its 2012-2013 winter schedule. The new Caribbean destinations are Antigua and Barbuda, Curacao and Costa Rica, all from Toronto Pearson International Airport. The airline's newest Mexican destination is Manzanillo, via Calgary International Airport. Details of WestJet's n...

Spend only hours in Costa Rica and you are still likely to come across the ubiquitous brand of Dos Pinos. Easily the most popular and profitable Dairy Operation in Costa Rica (and much of Central America), their milk, ice cream, yogurts, cheeses and other varied list of dairy (and other) products can be found in every Costa Rica hotel, business, restaurant and private household in the county, ...

The police took the shine out of a gang of international diamond thieves when they detained seven foreigners, including two students of local private colleges yesterday, and recovered stolen jewellery. Among the suspects were a 48-year-old Columbian and his 29-year-old son who is studying at a private college in Kajang. The diamond-studded jewellery was stolen from a Hong Kong-based jewe...

Bermuda Maritime Operations Centre / RCC Bermuda today said that Bermuda-registered mega yacht Golden Odyssey has gone to the rescue of a fishing boat in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Costa Rica. The 30-foot fishing boat Maria Christina had apparently been adrift for eight days, but all three people on board have survived. The Maria Christina is registered in Costa Rica and those on...

The economic dynamism of the last half of 2011 and the first of 2012 has generated more demand for loans, particularly in dollars. Dollar loans reported an increase of 16% (17% excluding the currency effect), while loans in colones increased 14%. Mario Rivera, manager of the Banco de Costa Rica, told Nacion.com that the preference for dollar credit is being driven mostly by companies w...

FLINT, MI -- A Flushing couple is out on bond after the federal government claims that they purposely hid profits from millions in foreign investments from tax officials, according to a complaint filed in U.S. District Court. James Stanley Gray, 80, and Karen Amerling-Gray, 67, are accused of purposely failing to claim their foreign bank accounts that were funded by profits from the million...

Residents of Latin America and the Caribbean, on average, are less likely than respondents worldwide and in developing countries to have formal bank accounts and formal savings, a recent Gallup/World Bank study finds. Fewer than two in five residents in Latin America and the Caribbean (39%) report having an account at a formal financial institution, and one in 10 report having saved at a formal fi...

Procomer has detected in Costa Rica a demand for organic coconut oil, dried fruits, electrical cables, tubing for electrical cables, sweet Chips, steel products, sponge biscuits, and cookies. On its website, The Trade Promotion Offices, PROCOMER, publishes business opportunities identified in countries outside the isthmus. In Belgium there is demand organic coconut oil, and the Dominican Rep...

SAN JOSE – Despite being home to some of the most destitute communities in Costa Rica, a successful environmental education program runs smoothly in the Brunca region. The community leaders, however, are firm believers in development that is harmonious with environmental conservation. The Environmental Community Education Program of the La Amistad International Park and Buffer Zone (Educa-PIL...

ORONO, Minn. – David P. Grzan made a living on Wall Street as a banker and consultant. In his free time, he always had a fascination with the story of Don Quixote. He eventually realized he could learn more life lessons from that story than from his years in finance. In his new book, Don Quixote's Impossible Dream, Grzan, explores the notion of chivalric love, which Don Quixote advanced to the ...

Panama Canal image for illustrative purposesNicaragua wants to connect the Atlantic and Pacific oceans with a $30 billion canal that it is hoped will lift the Central American country out of poverty. But it remains unclear who will foot the bill. Whenever Nicaraguan heads of government have the feeling they have to give their ailing popularity a boost, they reach into a drawer. For almost 200 ...

Once the design for the new sewer system and treatment plant in the province of Heredia, Costa Rica, has been finished, its construction will be put out to tender. The company Servicios Públicos de Heredia (ESPH by its Spanish initials) has estimated the cost of the project design at about $3.2 million. The Mexican-Costa Rican consortium GIA-Cacisa will be in charge of the design. The first ...

What's 44 years old, four countries wide, and comes in more than 30 flavors? For any Costa Rican, it's a no-brainer: POPS, the premium ice cream company that, since its founding in 1968, has found a way to become a multinational success with an increasingly diversified product line while maintaining its roots as a Costa Rican institution. According to president Carlos Abreu, American Ice Cre...

Egencia, an Expedia, Inc. company, announced the expansion of the Egencia Global Alliance to include strategic partnerships with leading local travel management companies (TMCs) in Russia, Ukraine, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, and Sri Lanka. The Egencia Global Alliance (EGA) is comprised of Egencia partners in 34 countries, bringing the company's presence to 54 countries worldwide. "Ou...

Costa Rica’s Nayara Hotel, Spa & Gardens has earned a coveted spot as one of the Top 100 Hotels in the Travel + Leisure 2012 World’s Best Awards readers’ survey, and wins the illustrious title as the No. 1 Resort in Central and South America. Once a hidden gem, Nayara Hotel, Spa & Gardens is fast becoming a favorite with honeymooners and couples in search of romance and adrenaline boosting adve...

Ascot Mining has decided to dispose of its stake in Canadian resource company Mineral Hill Industries to eliminate US$500,000 in associated debt. The company said the decision was made in response to the challenging market conditions for junior resource companies, which favour production and cash flow. “After much struggle, Ascot is now in an enviable position because it has a functioning go...

It seems that pineapple growers in Costa Rica have attempted to control export prices by reducing the amount of shipments made to the US in May and June. It is around that time that volumes usually rise dramatically pushing prices down. The volumes shipped to the US during this period were lower than usual with freight on board prices running at $9-10 per 27 pound box - considerably more than ...

UPS announced that it is making it easier for customers in Latin America and the Caribbean to conduct business around the world through the implementation of web-based shipping applications and visibility technology tools such as UPS Internet Shipping, UPS CampusShip(R), UPS Quantum View(R) Manage and UPS Developer Kit- Applications Programming Interfaces (API). The technology expansion will sa...

The law intends to make the cost of supervising the securities market be fully covered by its participants (Stock Market, Ceval, Brokerage Houses and Mutual Funds), who currently contribute 20%. José Rafael Brenes, head of the National Stock Exchange in Costa Rica, argues that this provision would be lethal to the system, since the cost of monitoring would represent 53% of market participant’s ...

Oceánica de Seguros, founded on Venezuelan capital, is the tenth insurance company to be incorporated into the Costa Rican market after its de-monopolization in 2008. The superintendent of insurance, Javier Cascante, said the company, which is the eleventh to join the insurance market after its opening, will have a joint operating license, for personal and general policies. Nacion.com quoted...

Costa Rica’s economy will expand faster than forecasted this year, outpacing inflation for the first time in “recent memory,” Nomura Securities International said in a report. Gross domestic product in Central America’s second-biggest economy will climb 5.5 percent this year, up from an earlier forecast of 4 percent, Boris Segura, a Latin America analyst for Nomura, wrote today. Inflation shoul...

Photo by Rolf Sommer. The beach of Nosara is known for its surf but also for the yoga spirit of many retreats that are available.If you purchase a product or service in a shop in Samara or Nosara and decide to use a credit or debit card as payment, you could be in trouble because there are still businesses that only accept cash. The merchant’s expression might change when the customer asks “Do...

Kurà Design Villas, opening in November 2012, launches a new level of eco-friendly, boutique hotel design to the southern Pacific Coast of Costa Rica, thanks to the creative passions of its owners and their combined expertise in architecture and biology. Starting with a commitment to protect the local environment, Alejandra Umana ( the biologist) and Martin Wells ( the architect) are both Costa...

An article in Nacion.com reports that in Costa Rica, from 2006 to 2012, the monthly prices for preschool, primary and secondary private schools has doubled, and then goes on to outline the various reasons on the subject put forward by different personalities consulted, from the Education Minister Leonardo Garnier to Genis Michael Murray, president of the Association of Private Schools. The funn...

Few things are as elemental to travel as guidebooks. Whether for a weekend in Washington or three months of exploring Australia, Fodor's, Frommer's, Lonely Planet and Moon tell us what to see and where to eat. But they're also an albatross. Consider that trip to Australia: Do you really need to drag 1,100 pages with every step? All that weight and bulk become a nuisance, especially when your wo...

Mattress licensing group Comfort Solutions, with headquarters in Willowbrook, Ill., has signed a licensing agreement with Grupo Diveco in Guatemala City, Guatemala. The Central American manufacturer is producing beds under the Comfort Solutions and King Koil brands. Grupo Diveco is a major manufacturer supplying sleep shops, furniture stores and department stores, as well as the hospitality sec...

DENVER, Jul 04, 2012 - Frontier Airlines turns 18 on July 5 and is celebrating by offering 18% off domestic fares. The birthday fare sale -- which starts July 3 and continues through July 5 -- features 18% savings on travel through mid-November to all of the airline's destinations. The 18% discount applies to regular and sale fares for travel July 24 through Nov. 14, 2012. Tickets must be purch...

After reviewing the financial report of the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE), which reveals very high debt levels, the government of Costa Rica has recommended that the authorities of the energy body look for allies, partners or other investors, for financing their projects, among which is the high volume, large hydroelectric construction project El Diquís in the southern region. A...